Facebook has begun integrating OpenTable and Rovi TV guide information to its mobile Pages so users can now book a reservation and check out what's coming on TV right within the social networking app. For the former, there'll be a Reservations prompt located in the restaurant's Facebook Page, underneath the address and hours of operation. Simply pick the desired date, time and party size, and you can book a table in seconds. The Rovi integration, on the other hand, provides information on upcoming episodes of your favorite TV shows so you'll know exactly when and which channel it'll be on. The OpenTable and Rovi integrations are live right now on the mobile web as well as in the latest iOS app update, which also lets you tap and search for hashtags. iOS users can go ahead and get it from the source link below, while Android users will have to sit tight for now.

Just in case you didn't have enough content options from the likes of Roku and your cable set top box, Toshiba has partnered with Rovi to integrate the DivX Plus Streaming codec into a new line of TVs. The streaming format promises enhanced multimedia controls like multi-language subtitles, resumable playback across devices and Dynamic Resolution Scaling, which should be good for those with fluctuating bandwidth. However, there aren't that many services behind the format just yet, though Knowhow Movies by Dixons Retail in the UK has pledged its support. Still, one can never have enough ways to entertain the kids.

The company with so much love it changed its name to fool its fans is at it again, this time killing the signal that provides guide data directly to many televisions and set-top boxes. You see, before changing its name from Macrovision, Rovi acquired Gemstar-TV guide in 2008 -- which was probably most well known for the integrated program guide common in higher end TVs throughout the last decade. While most people just use the guide offered on their provider's set-top, this guide is for those who actually use the clear-QAM or over-the-air tuner in their TV. The way it worked is that manufacturers baked the software into the TV, which would then tune into a local affiliate's broadcast of a week's worth of guide data. The setup successfully made it through the digital transition -- minus the truckloads of analog-only TVs ceasing to work along the way -- as new TVs featured a digital version of the service, as well as some digital converters, like the DTVpal DVR.

Like Amazon, Best Buy and Barnes & Noble before it, Toys R Us is following the path of being a retailer distributing its own branded hardware (Tabeo, Nabi) with an accompanying app store, and then supplementing those offerings with a digital media service. ToysrusMovies.com is a Rovi-powered digital storefront currently available to PCs, Macs and other Flash compatible devices, with an app planned for the Tabeo soon, as well as Blu-ray players, HDTVs and other mobile devices including iOS and Android. The content consists of "more than 4,000" titles from big names like Disney, Fox, NBCUniversal and more, available for 24-hour rental starting at $2.99, and $5.99 for download or streaming. Right out of the gate its scored an early release of Madagascar 3 two weeks before the disc release, currently a $16 purchase with "unlimited" streaming to activated devices, with downloads to up to 5 devices. Now of course, all it needs is some compatible devices, but building an ecosystem is a process, and may be key to separating Toys R Us' offerings from the competition. Check out more details in the press release after the break or at the site.

Beloved UK supermarketSainsbury's is making a big push into digital media, after snapping up e-book retailer Anobii and music company Global Media Vault, it's now partnering with Rovi for a digital video service. Launching later in the year, it'll offer video-on-demand and downloadable copies of "major" film and TV titles, available the same time the discs are available in store. It'll initially be limited to computers, before rolling out to Smart TVs, connected Blu-Ray players, smartphones and consoles. The only question we have is if we'll be able to collect Nectar Points on our purchases -- if so, we're sold.

Rovi considers itself the master of TV program guides everywhere -- even if somedisagree -- so it's almost inevitable that the company would negotiate a new patent license with Google. The deal puts all of Google Fiber's TV interfaces in the clear, whether it's the set-top box near the TV or the less traditional interfaces found on the web and the Nexus 7 remote. Considering Rovi's existing connection to Google TV, the new pact may cement the company and its partner in Mountain View as surprisingly close friends.

Nuance, of Dragon TV fame announced today that it was licensing Rovi's (formerly known as Macrovision) metadata for its talky-TV platform. Once integrated, the application will be able to marshall far more information than it currently can -- enabling it to give answers to queries like "Who plays Chuck on Gossip Girl?" That said, we're not holding out much hope that it'll be able to answer our question about which guy from CSI played that bad guy in that movie we can't remember the title of, or something.

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Mon, 21 May 2012 21:33:00 -040021|20241929http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/10/amazon-rovi-flixster-and-samsung-highlight-ultraviolets-ces-p/%3Futm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%26ncid%3Drss_semi
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The launch of UltraViolet earlier this year was very much the same as we've come to expect from Hollywood. In the case of DVD and Blu-ray, they eventually manage to get it right. Time will tell if UltraViolet ends up successful or another DRM story like PlaysForSure, but studio execs like Ron Sanders of Warner Brothers said "a year ago this was just a concept... we have a bright future" while participating in a panel at the UltraViolet press event at CES today. There are plenty of reasons he might feel that way, but announcements from Panasonic and Samsung to add Flixster app to its HDTVs and Blu-ray players is surely one of them -- Flixster is owned by Warner and evidently one of the most downloaded apps of all time from the iTunes store. In addition to the success of Flixster, the DECE claims to already have 750k UltraViolet households signed up in less than three months. The current state of UltraViolet and much more after the break.

Mo money, mo problems, right Hulu? Seems it, considering the newly up-for-sale content hub has just been slapped with a patent infringement suit. This latest bit of intellectual property beef centers on the online content provider's alleged unlicensed use of Rovi's electronic program guide technology. According to Reuters, the company, which currently powers the streaming likes of Blockbuster On Demand and CinemaNow, is seeking financial compensation for potential "lost license revenue and treble damages," potentially tripling any future settlement award. While Hulu has yet to issue a statement on the matter, we'd be willing to bet those takeover talks are taking a backseat until this gets sorted.

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Sun, 31 Jul 2011 16:38:00 -040021|20005307http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/13/rovi-sues-amazon-and-imdb-for-infringing-tv-guide-patents/%3Futm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%26ncid%3Drss_semi
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Rovi sounds friendly enough, but the company used to be called Macrovision -- and the infamous DRM provider just sued Amazon's IMDb.com last week for infringement of five TV guide patents. The patents came along with Rovi's acquisition of Gemstar, and they cover everything from interactive program guides to purchasing products on-demand to scheduling recordings from a computer -- a huge range that seems to hit everything from QVC to the Xfinity TV iPad app. That probably explains why Rovi says it has deals with everyone from Apple to Yahoo -- between its TV listings products, recent purchase of a sizable video library, and the current litigation with IMDb, it appears that the company is serious about leaving its DRM-centric roots behind and moving into internet content distribution.

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Thu, 13 Jan 2011 05:08:00 -050021|19798802http://www.engadget.com/2010/12/23/rovi-announces-agreement-to-acquire-sonic-solutions-for-720-mil/%3Futm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%26ncid%3Drss_semi
http://www.engadget.com/2010/12/23/rovi-announces-agreement-to-acquire-sonic-solutions-for-720-mil/http://www.engadget.com/2010/12/23/rovi-announces-agreement-to-acquire-sonic-solutions-for-720-mil/%3Futm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%23commentsRovi Corporation has already gone though a few significant transformations -- it was once the DRM-centered company known as Macrovision -- and it's now set to undergo another big one. The company has just announced a "definitive agreement" to acquire Sonic Solutions in a deal valued at $720 million. Among other things, Sonic owns RoxioNow (the service formally known as CinemaNow), which will give Rovi access to over 10,000 movies and TV shows, and Sonic also just acquired DivX earlier this year, which Rovi points out has a presence on more than 350 million consumer electronics devices. Head on past the break for the official press release, and look for the deal to close sometime in the first quarter of next year if all goes according to plan.

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Thu, 23 Dec 2010 16:51:00 -050021|19775855http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/21/google-tv-who-is-the-competition-and-what-are-they-saying-about/%3Futm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%26ncid%3Drss_semi
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The Google TV has landed and is already sending ripples through the marketplace, but what about all the companies already blending internet and TV? Whether they are already planning to work with the new initiative (Rovi), even more firmly staking a claim on their existing technology and vision for the connected TV (Microsoft, Yahoo), sounding like it's an option for the future (Samsung, VIZIO, Boxee) or already working on their own Android on TV projects (People of Lava, MIPS) each one should tell a little bit about where this market is headed in the coming months and years. Read on for their statements -- and a quick breakdown of what each is bringing to the table in case you weren't already running a network cable to your HDTV years ago.

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Fri, 21 May 2010 13:40:00 -040021|19486459http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/11/rovi-introduces-latest-cable-guide-that-youll-never-see/%3Futm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%26ncid%3Drss_semi
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Long before Macrovision bought TV Guide (formerly Gemstar) and change its name to Rovi, we've been seeing guide demos that are worth getting excited about. But after years and years of the same old crap from big cable, all the excitement is dashed instantly as we realize we'll never see 'em deployed. We'd love to believe that the new TotalGuide for Service Providers announced this week at The Cable Show would change all that, you know with its slick looking user interface and unified search -- which appears to be a better implementation than TiVo's. If the screen shot above looks familiar it's because it looks similar to the TotalGuide for CE (used to be codenamed Liquid) that is currently available to CE manufacturers. More pictures and screen shot after the jump.

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Tue, 11 May 2010 20:18:00 -040021|19473689http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/23/rovi-tv-guide-widget-debuts-on-samsung-hdtvs/%3Futm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%26ncid%3Drss_semi
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The agreement between Rovi (formerly Macrovision) and Samsung for EPG data has taken an odd turn with the debut of the TV Guide widget for Samsung's Yahoo! Widget enabled HDTVs. Check the pictures to get an idea of what it looks like, though with host of these televisions likely hooked up to satellite or cable boxes, the usability of these abbreviated "what's on" listings when another click of the remote would bring up a guide that will actually tune to those stations. Still, check the pics for an example of the flexibility of the widget platform, including the option to load up Daily Hotlists from Rovi's editors daily, complete with personal profiles but aren't exactly satiating the appetite we've developed for the Liquid guide demoed earlier this year.

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Mon, 23 Nov 2009 16:18:00 -050021|19251347http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/27/pace-and-rovi-work-together-to-make-a-standard-set-top-a-true-mu/%3Futm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%26ncid%3Drss_semi
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There aren't many times where we're caught off guard by a new product enough to think, why didn't we think of that, but this is one of them. The set-top-box manufacture, Pace, has just launched one of the coolest multi-room DVR solutions we've ever heard of. Not only does it over come the limitations of other so calledsolutions by not being limited to two tuners (for the whole house), a 160 GB hard drive, copy control flags (it streams, not copies) and a scattered recorded TV list; but it doesn't require even a single extra wire to be run in your house -- no, it doesn't use WiFi. What Pace has done is to work with Rovi and load up new software on its standard dual tuner HD set-top, the DC700X. This new software paired with a MoCA 1.1 NAS (pictured above) makes every DC700X set-top in the house a multi-room DVR. If this sounds like what you've been waiting for, then you'll want to click through past the jump to learn all about it -- or just to see another picture.

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Tue, 27 Oct 2009 20:51:00 -040021|19212435http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/18/samsung-signs-up-to-use-rovi-epg-technology/%3Futm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%26ncid%3Drss_semi
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What this means for consumers is yet to be announced, but with any luck that cool new guide called Liquid, that we saw last month from Rovi, could be coming to Samsung HDTVs. Where all of this fits in with tru2way still remains to be seen as well, but with more and more TVs coming equipped with network connectivity and thus access to accurate guide data and VOD services like Amazon and Netflix, makes us wonder if tru2way will even matter. We suppose this CES will be the real indicator, when we see if CableCARD makes a comeback and if tru2way is a part of it.

Hold on to your hats folks because the company that we love to hate is turning over a new leaf by kicking off its old DRM shoes and leveraging its acquisition of Gemstar in a big way. What we mean is that this is the first time in the history of Macrovision that we can remember being excited about an announcement; and boy does it make perfect sense that it comes with a new company name. Rovi's first consumer product should be available in various HDTVs next year, and among the new jazzed up looking guide you can expect a full DLNA client that is designed to be a single access point for all of your content. This includes internet sourced content like Slacker radio, YouTube XL, BLOCKBUSTER OnDemand, and CinemaNow; as well as anything you might have on your PC like pictures, music and even videos. Add in a little social networking from sites such as Flixster and we might have ourselves a new way to watch TV. No word yet on what new TVs will feature Liquid, but we'd expect to hear more at CES '10. The full release is after the jump.

Hold on to your hats folks because the company that we love to hate is turning over a new leaf by kicking off its old DRM shoes and leveraging its acquisition of Gemstar in a big way. What we mean is that this is the first time in the history of Macrovision that we can remember being excited about an announcement; and boy does it make perfect sense that it comes with a new company name. Rovi's first consumer product should be available in various HDTVs next year, and among the new jazzed up looking guide you can expect a full DLNA client that is designed to be a single access point for all of your content. This includes internet sourced content like Slacker radio, YouTube XL, BLOCKBUSTER OnDemand, and CinemaNow; as well as anything you might have on your PC like pictures, music and even videos. Add in a little social networking from sites such as Flixster and we might have ourselves a new way to watch TV. No word yet on what new TVs will feature Liquid, but we'd expect to hear more at CES '10. The full release is after the jump.